Großalmerode (or Grossalmerode) is a town in the Werra-Meißner-Kreis in Hesse, Germany. Geography Location The small town, which has had town rights since 1775, lies 21 km east of Kassel in the Meißner-Kaufunger Wald Nature Park on the river Gelster. Here the constituent community of Laudenbach can also be found, in the Kaufunger Wald (range) between the Steinberg or Bilstein in the northwest and the Hirschberg in the southwest. Not far to the southeast stands the highest mountain in northeast Hesse, the Hoher Meißner. Neighbouring communities These are Witzenhausen, Hessisch Lichtenau, Helsa, Bad Sooden-Allendorf and Berkatal. Constituent communities Großalmerode’s Ortsteile are Weißenbach, Trubenhausen, Uengsterode, Rommerode, Laudenbach and Epterode. Also within town limits are Bransrode, Gut Giesenhagen and Faulbach, although these are not outlying centres, but rather officially parts of the main town. History In 1386, today’s Großalmerode had its first documentary mention as Almerode. Town rights, though, only came in 1775. Ceramics manufacture in mediaeval Großalmerode was very advanced. The products (Hessian crucible) were exported worldwide for their high resistance to heat (1 100 to 1 200 °C). At a gathering of the Christian Gemeinschaftsbewegung (“Fellowship Movement”) in 1907 there were ecstatic phenomena, the condemnation of which led to a rift between the Gemeinschaftsbewegung and the Pentecostal movement in 1909, through the so-called Berlin Declaration. Politics Town council The municipal election held on 26 March 2006 yielded the following results: Mayor From 2000 to 2017, Andreas Nickel (SPD) has been the town’s mayor. In 2017 Finn Thomsen was elected mayor. Coat of arms The town’s arms might be described thus: Argent a mound vert, thereon three crucibles gules, one on top of the others, between two piles of Üller azure. Üller which are made of Almerode clay, like the crucibles, are somewhat like marbles, but often much bigger. Town partnerships Royston, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom Culture and sightseeing Museums Glass and Ceramics Museum Buildings Bilsteinturm (tower) on the Bilstein The Evangelical parish church represents an architectural mixture of Baroque Revival, Gothic Revival and later style elements. The nave was added in 1913 and 1914 to a Late Gothic quire. Sport With regard to sport, Großalmerode is well known for the 58 km-long mountain bike trail running across the Kaufunger Wald. Each year, with a few variations on the course, the so-called Bilstein Bike Marathon is held here, which draws mountain bikers from all over Germany and the Benelux countries to